No Borders go to Court

No Borders want to attack the social landlord OPH and the préfecture of Pas-de-Calais for illegal eviction from a squat.

On 10 January the police evicted an empty house belonging to the OPH (office public de l’habitat), at 221 route de Saint-Omer in Calais. The activists stated that this eviction was illegal and that they had squatted the building for more than 48 hours, which means that the authorities cannot evict them this way.

Four of the activists, who were arrested during the eviction, were released without charge some hours later because there was not enough evidence to charge for the alleged offence – knowledge of damage, and gathering together.

The activists state that they have filed a legal complaint for illegal eviction and that the OPH and the prefecture will be summoned to court this Wednesday in Boulogne-sur-Mer. Questioned on this point, their lawyer, Maître Ruef, did not want to elaborate. As for the president of the OPH Gérard Clais, he said that he was not aware of this summons: “Anyway, even if they have done a summons, I don’t think that the judges will allow a return to this squat”.